


We learned more from a 3 minute record

by thunderfcknroad



Category: Mozart l'Opéra Rock - Mozart/Baguian & Guirao
Genre: High School AU, da ponte is a dick and is hinted to be like low key transphobic, its self indulgent as fuck, leopold features at the end but like hes dealt with pretty quick, mozart is a cheerleader, nb lesbian nannerl, nb mozart, this is just so not my best work but i dont care, trans salieri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-06-16 01:53:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15426474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thunderfcknroad/pseuds/thunderfcknroad
Summary: Mozart is the most popular boy in high school. Head of the cheerleading team, dashingly gorgeous, and wonderfully kind.In conclusion, Salieri is very weak.But after a very strange sports session a friendship flourishes that Salieri didn't see coming in a million years.





	We learned more from a 3 minute record

**Author's Note:**

> This is literally the stupidest dumbest most self indulgent bullshit I've ever written. This was not written to be a piece of art and believe me I am so aware of it. Sit back and enjoy the ride.

Salieri shrugged his bag onto his shoulder. He leaned against his locker for a minute just staring into space before closing it and dragging himself down the hallway. He didn’t want to go to PE. After about a week of forcing himself into the wrong changing room he’d forged a note to give him the semester free from participating. On the other hand now all he did was stand in the cold and get sent to fetch balls and cones when no one else wanted to.

Upon arriving he was informed that the rain meant they were indoors today. Salieri sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets. Great. This couldn’t get any worse.

If they were in doors it meant everyone was indoors. Both their year and the year below had sport at the same time but usually there was enough space so it was spread out. There were going to be so many people in that hall.

And of course Mozart would be there.

It did not matter in the slightest that Mozart was a whole year younger than him he was easily the most popular boy in school. He was kind and energetic and the only guy on the cheerleading squad. He was also insanely good looking but if anyone asked Salieri would vehemently deny having ever said that. Girls fawned over him everywhere he went and from what Salieri could see he took it all in his stride without complaining.

Oh what Salieri would give to get that kind of attention from Mozart.

Salieri trudged up the stairs to the sports hall and sure enough as soon as he pushed the doors open he could hear Mozart’s laughter bouncing off the walls. Salieri looked over to see Mozart hanging upside down from some bars. For some reason, Mozart seemed to notice his arrival. They made eye contact and Mozart’s grin seemed to grow even wider. He hopped down of the bars and practically bounced over to Salieri.

“Hi! Antonio right?”

Salieri just sort of stared at Mozart. His entire world screeched to a halt. There were too many things happening. Mozart was talking to him. Mozart knew his name. Ok, actually there were only two things happening but they were too much for Salieri.

“Uh. Yes?”

Mozart laughed and ran his hand through his hair. “Oh phew good. I uh. I saw your composition at the showcase and I wanted to tell you it was awesome. I really loved your chord progression and oh! The violin part! I had goosebumps!”

Salieri blushed but he couldn’t hide his smile. “That’s very kind of you. Thank you. I didn’t know you were so into music?”

Mozart shrugged. “I dabble. My sister is the big musician of the house. I think you two would get along I should introduce you! I still love music but I didn’t care for the pressure so I let it remain in the background of my life. I would love to hear more of yours though! We have a really nice piano at our house if you want to come round some time. You can meet Nannerl too! She’s home for a couple of weeks! Oh you have to come by! Please say you will!”

Mozart grabbed Salieri’s arm in his excitement and Salieri felt himself go an even deeper shade of red, if that was even possible.

“Ok. Ok I will. I’m free this weekend?”

Mozart’s face burst into a smile. “Great! My father isn’t around on Saturday so I would recommend then! I’ll let Nannerl know!” he leaned in and quickly pecked Salieri on the cheek before bouncing back to his own year group. Salieri watched as Mozart draped his arms over various people’s shoulders with ease and kissed people’s temples and cheeks.

The kiss on Salieri’s own cheek felt like it was burning on his skin. He realised that this was normal behaviour for Mozart but Salieri was not used to it and he was very weak.

The lesson passed slowly. Salieri got hit by three dodgeballs because he couldn’t keep his eyes off Mozart. The way Mozart effortlessly spun through the air, the way he landed back on the ground as if he weighed nothing. The way Mozart would do a high kick and his leg would just go all the way up. Salieri felt himself getting increasingly flustered the longer he watched but he couldn’t tear his eyes away. Mozart caught him staring and smiled before turning away and effortlessly dropping into the splits. Before Salieri had time to process that he was knocked sideways by a ball connecting with his head.

He sat on the floor dazed. The world was spinning slightly.

“Move. I’ll take him to the nurse he’s probably concussed.”

Salieri felt a pair of hands on his shoulders helping him to a standing position. He draped an arm over the person’s shoulder to balance himself better.

“He should pay better attention then shouldn’t he?”

“Oh shut up I watched you purposely aim at his head you jackass.”

The second voice was coming from the person he was leaning on and a wave of shock ran through him as he registered where he knew the voice from.

He turned his head to look at Mozart. Mozart was frowning but Salieri felt like he was still glowing. They began to walk out of the hall.

“Are you wearing glitter?”

Mozart seemed caught off guard by Salieri’s voice and his face softened.

“All the world’s a stage my dear.”

They hobbled to the nurses office together in silence.

 

Mozart was welcomed as warmly by the nurse as he was by everyone else in the school.

“Wolfgang how wonderful to see you! And it would seem you are not the injured one today! Congratulations!”

Mozart laughed and Salieri felt like he could melt away.

“No my friend got a dodgeball to the head. He seems concussed.”

Salieri’s still spinning mind got very stuck on the word “friend” and missed the rest of the conversation.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was sitting next to him with his hand on Salieri’s knee and was calling him his friend. When did this even happen? There was a short second where Salieri wondered if he was more concussed than he thought and was hallucinating the entire thing but he decided he was more rational than that. Instead he just sat silently as Mozart talked and focussed on not chucking his guts up.

“I have to get back. Are you gonna be ok?”

There were about 5 seconds of silence before Salieri realised Mozart was now talking to him.

“Oh uh yeah.”

Mozart studied his face. “How are you getting home?”

“Bus”

Mozart frowned. “Ok no. You can get a lift with me. Meet me by the front entrance after last period.”

Before Salieri had a chance to protest Mozart was up and out of the office.

He felt the nurse’s gentle hand on his shoulder.

“Do you still feel nauseous?”

_Yes more than before_

“Yeah a little.”

“You should lie down. Oh, and take your binder off. That won’t be helping your nausea.”

Salieri blushed and allowed himself to be led to the bed. He doesn’t remember much after that so he must have passed out.

 

The next thing he knew the nurse was shaking him gently telling him school was nearly out. His head was still throbbing slightly and as he sat up he felt a light wave of nausea wash over him again.

“Wolfgang will be waiting for you. I wouldn’t hang around here.”

Salieri decided to put the way his stomach flipped down to the nausea as opposed to a reaction to that comment. He gathered his stuff and thanked the nurse on his way out.

 

Mozart was indeed waiting for him. When he spotted Salieri his face split into a grin and Salieri couldn’t help but smile back.

“How are you feeling?”

Salieri grimaced slightly in answer. Mozart just nodded in understanding. Salieri slid into the back of the black car that apparently belonged to Mozart.

Mozart slid into the front seat and kissed his mother on the cheek.

“Mother this is Antonio. He’s very cool but very concussed.”

Salieri gave a half hearted wave. It did not go unnoticed that Mozart put some emphasis on the word ‘he’ as he introduced him. Salieri sunk down in his seat slightly and crossed his arms across his chest. Mozart’s mother just smiled at him.

“Mozart told me what happened. Where am I taking you dear?”

Salieri mumbled his address and they drove away.

He kept catching Mozart’s eye in the rear-view mirror. Mozart would just smile before Salieri would look away again.

They pulled up at Salieri’s house and Mozart jumped out of the car to open Salieri’s door.

“I can do this myself you know. I’m not completely useless.”

Mozart smiled and blushed slightly. “I know but I feel bad.”

Salieri paused as he unlocked the front door.

“You don’t have to feel bad. It wasn’t your fault.”

Mozart crossed his arms and started backing back towards the car. He smirked. “I think we both know it was.”

Salieri opened his mouth to protest but there was no way he could backpedal this one. He settled for just looking at the ground and pushing the front door open. A smile had crept onto his face though.

“I’ll message you about tomorrow. Feel better!”

Salieri glanced back over his shoulder but Mozart was already in the car. Salieri went inside and closed the door behind him as Mozart’s smirk burned on the inside of his eyelids. God he was so far gone.

 

Mozart slid back into the car next to his mother and tried to ignore the speed of his heartbeat. That silence was confirmation right? All of Mozart’s nerves were jumping. Salieri had been distracted by him. He had been staring at him. His mother looked at him silently and raised her eyebrows.

“What?”

His mother just started the car and said nothing. Mozart rolled his eyes and slumped in his seat.

His heart did not slow down.

He pulled out his phone. He found Salieri on facebook easy enough and shot off a friend request and a message.

_Hey! If you drop by at like 2 tomorrow we should be golden! Get some rest and drink lots of water!_

Immediately the little typing bubble appeared and Mozart had to stop himself from punching the air.

**Hi! That should be fine. Can you give me your address? Im gonna rest in a minute. First i have to prove to my brother that this wasnt a hate crime. Hes far too ready to fight anyone.**

Mozart smiled slightly. He texted back his address and slid his phone into his pocket.  
His mother’s silence was suffocating and full of judgement but Mozart just rolled down a window and stared at the road. His heart was fluttering and nothing could take that away from him right now. Not this car ride. Not the suffocating judgement of his father when he got home. Nothing.

Mozart jolted awake at 9am the next morning. He immediately fumbled for his phone. His finger hovered over Salieri’s chat bubble for a moment before he opened it.

_Good morning! Hope you’re feeling better. Also hope we are still on for today?_

There was no answer for 2 hours. Mozart nervously paced around his room. He tried to calm his mind by doing hand stands against the wall but that just made him dizzy so he stopped. After that he worked his way through a bag of almonds. His phone was just sitting on his bed. Every time it would light up Mozart’s heart would jump but it was always one of his stupid group chats or Da Ponte asking why he bailed sport to help some senior. There were a lot of messages like that. Mozart muted all the chats.

He was draped backwards on his chair when his phone pinged again. Mozart scrambled over nearly knocking four books onto the floor in the process. His stomach flipped when he saw Salieri’s name on the screen.

**Oh god you’re a morning person huh? What did i do to deserve this. Yeah id still love to come round dont worry. You will see me appear. Im taking the bus in so Ill arrive at like 2:05**

_Great I’ll pick you up from the bus stop!_

Mozart flopped back onto his bed. Why was he so freaking nervous about this? Da Ponte had told him that Salieri was boring and not worth the effort but Mozart didn’t see it. He could hear the heart and the longing in Salieri’s music. He could see the strength and fire that lay behind the weird emo exterior. It was so clear he was trying to seem normal but Mozart just couldn’t help but see past that. And beneath the surface Mozart thought Salieri might just be spectacular.

 

  
Salieri glared at the rain on the bus windows. Lousy lousy weather. As the bus pulled in to his stop he saw Mozart standing there with a massive umbrella. Even in the grey afternoon Mozart seemed to glow and Salieri couldn’t help but think that was a little unfair.

Salieri greeted Mozart with a smile and ducked under the umbrella beside him.  
The silence was not uncomfortable but Salieri could feel Mozart had questions. It was only natural. They’d only really just met and just because Salieri was weird and creepy and knew a silly amount of information about Mozart didn’t mean the same was going to be true for Mozart.

The Mozart house was not really far from the bus stop at all. Salieri wondered why Mozart had bothered coming out into the rain for a measly 50 meters but he wasn’t going to question it. They hung their slightly damp jackets up to dry and Mozart led Salieri to his room.

“Nannerl arrives at like 3:30 so we can just chill for a bit. I barely know things about you!”

Salieri watched as Mozart surprisingly ungracefully launched himself onto the bed. He forced down a chuckle but carefully came to sit next to him.

“Uh. Well my name is Antonio Salieri and I like music and I hate sports. My parents are Italian but I grew up here. My Italian is rusty but good enough. I play piano and violin. I like... books? I’m running out of things to say."

Mozart laughed. “Well I’m Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and I like sports and music so we can at least bond over one of those things. I don’t speak Italian but I do speak German but really badly. I also like books but I don’t really have the attention span to read a lot because ADHD. I play piano but I’m probably quite rusty since my sister left. I used to play with her when we could get a moment to breathe away from our father.”

Salieri nodded along as Mozart spoke. He was listening but he found that it wasn’t Mozart’s words that gave him the most information. When Mozart spoke it involved every part of his body. The way his eyes sparkled and a soft smile played across his face when he mentioned his sister. The way his shoulders tensed when he mentioned his father. The way his hands balled into fists at the mention of him playing piano. The nervous chuckle when he mentioned his ADHD.

If Mozart was a puzzle he had no problem handing Salieri every single piece he needed. He was an open book even if he didn’t know it.

Salieri felt instantly more at ease. He didn’t have to hide here and he knew it. He slid slightly down into Mozart’s pillows. His t-shirt shifted slightly and he saw Mozart’s eyes settle on the strap of his binder. He shouldn’t even be wearing it but he really wasn’t in the mood to meet new people and get misgendered. Apparently Mozart wasn’t an idiot.

“Should you be wearing that if you’ve been sick?”

Salieri just shrugged and pulled his t-shirt back to cover it.

An awkward silence fell now. Mozart shifted slightly. His face was turned away from Salieri when he asked his next question.

“Why would you want to be a guy?”

Salieri felt a familiar bubble of annoyance in his gut. “I don’t want to be a guy. I am a guy. The world just doesn’t see me like that.”

The annoyance must have seeped through into his voice because Mozart’s voice was so apologetic.

“Fuck no I know I worded that wrong it’s just. I only ask because, well how do you realise you’re a guy. Like how do you realise that what you are feeling is ‘oh I’m a dude’ like how do you know what that feels like?”

Salieri felt the bubble of annoyance burst. He still rolled his eyes before answering but there was no bite to it anymore.

“I mean I guess I always knew there was something off about my relationship with my body. I cycled through non binary and then non binary guy first and then I guess eventually I realised I was a guy. I don’t really know what the feeling was but it just felt right. I mean you’re a guy. Surely you must have some idea?”

Mozart seemed to have only become more puzzled. “Ok you said a lot of words there I did not understand.”

Salieri looked back equally perplexed for a moment before the penny dropped. “Oh. Non binary is when you don’t identify with gender. So instead of he or her, non binary people will often use neutral pronouns like they. You can have leanings towards man or woman and still be non binary or you can be completely unaligned.”

Mozart seemed to ponder that. Salieri couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“I can’t believe we’ve been hanging out for less than 20 minutes and I’m already on gender theory 101. I’m sorry I don’t mean to lecture you.”

“Non Binary guy?”

Salieri broke out of his minor spiral and refocussed on Mozart. Mozart was sitting very still and his hands were gripping the bed sheets.

 

  
“Hey Wolfgang are you ok?”

Mozart jumped and turned to meet Salieri’s eyes again. People could do that? People could decide they didn’t identify with a gender at all? You could do that?

“I’m fine. I just didn’t know that was a thing I-people could do.”

Salieri nodded slowly. He seemed to be studying his face so Mozart plastered on a smile.

Mozart head was spinning with hypothetical conversations. Conversations where he could introduce himself in a different way. Conversations where he no longer had to be the Son. Conversations where all the mess in his mind could be reflected in his gender.  
He grabbed his laptop from the floor.

“We can watch something while we wait for Nannerl to arrive?”

Salieri still looked sort of wary but he nodded slowly.

Mozart wasn’t even paying attention. He could hear the show as it played. He was vaguely aware of Salieri next to him every time he laughed. Salieri’s laugh was so warm. Mozart wished he could appreciate it more but his head there was a massive “They” shaped sign in his brain that kept flashing. Could he use that? He’d only just learned of it’s existence and felt somewhat underqualified. What a stupid feeling. Surely that was stupid right? You didn’t need qualifications to be a certain gender. He tried to focus on the show in front of him. And next to him.

Mozart head went suddenly completely blank and clear when he heard the front door close and Nannerl’s voice yell his name.

 

  
“Oh she’s here! Come on Antonio you will love her.”

Mozart jumped off the bed and pulled Salieri with him by the hand. Salieri blushed deeply but luckily Mozart was far too distracted to notice.

They nearly tumbled down the stairs and Mozart threw himself into his sister’s arms.  
Nannerl was not at all what Salieri had been expecting.

She had a short blonde pixie cut and was decked out in a very fashionable tweed suit.  
Mozart was also gushing about her suit as he danced around her joyfully and Nannerl glowed. The glowing must be a hereditary trait Salieri thought. He stood awkwardly at the bottom of the stairs and watched until Mozart introduced him.

“Oh Nannerl! This is Antonio! He’s the musician I was telling you about!”

Nannerl smiled and came over to shake his hand. “Oh Wolfgang’s told me so much about you! Antonio’s such a good name! Italian right?”

Salieri smiled. He looked at Nannerl and saw a hesitant look of understanding in her eyes and decided to test the waters. “Thanks! I picked it myself! Figured it would be easier on the parents if I stayed in their comfort zones.”

Nannerl’s eyes lit up and Salieri knew he was in the clear. “Oh wonderful!” She pulled Salieri into a hug but as she did so she whispered “They them. Don’t tell him yet.”

Salieri nodded slightly and couldn’t help but laugh at the irony. Only an hour ago Salieri had been explaining non binary to Mozart and in waltzes his sibling just oozing non binary all over the floor. Salieri felt a warmth in his heart.

“We should make some music! I haven’t played with Wolfie in too long and I am dying to see what you can do Antonio!”

Nannerl motioned for them to follow them as they walked to where, Salieri presumed, the piano room was. Mozart grabbed his hand again and tugged him in the same direction. Salieri made a mental note to sacrifice a goat to whichever god was responsible for Mozart’s willingness to hold his hand.

When he saw the piano Salieri felt like all the air had been pushed from his lungs. It was so beautiful. He detached himself from Mozart and tentatively walked over to it.

Nannerl placed themselves at the keys and began playing a simple warm up melody. Salieri laid his hand on the wood and let the soft vibrations run through his skin. Nannerl shuffled to the side on the piano stool, inviting him to sit with them.

Salieri glanced at Mozart who nodded. He was watching him attentively with a soft smile on his face.

Salieri sunk onto the stool next to Nannerl and let his fingers hover over the keys. Tentatively he pressed down. He soon slowly started playing one of his compositions. Words could not describe how it felt to hear his own melody lines come from such a beautiful instrument. He heard Nannerl play some experimental notes alongside him and soon they were improvising along side his own melody. It was magical.

He finished up and Nannerl was grinning. Salieri hugged them on instinct.  
Mozart clapped enthusiastically and bounced over to them.

“I told you. I told both of you! You are amazing together!”

Salieri blushed but he was smiling. He hadn’t felt this good about his music in a while. He felt unbreakable. Nannerl put a hand on his shoulder.

“Did you write that yourself? It was beautiful.”

Salieri nodded. “Yeah. It’s an old one but it’s one of the cheerier ones. I wrote it after I came out to my brother.”

Salieri looked at Nannerl pointedly and they looked back at him with mock indignation.

“Oh don’t worry I already know Nannerl’s a lesbian.” 

Salieri didn’t break eye contact with Nannerl and just raised his eyebrows.

Nannerl rolled their eyes and looked up at Mozart.

“Wolfgang he’s talking about something else.”

Salieri suddenly felt uncomfortable. “I can leave if you’d prefer.”

Nannerl grabbed his wrist. “Not a chance sunshine. Wolfgang for about 3 months now I’ve been identifying as Non Binary. Still a lesbian but just now I also don’t really have a gender.”

Mozart’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open slightly. “You can do that? You don’t even have to change your label? There’s no special label?”

At this point both Nannerl and Salieri were looking at Mozart with complete dumbfounded confusion on their faces. He didn’t seem to notice.

“So if I was non binary I could still also be bi”

Salieri blurted out “You’re bi?” at the same time as Nannerl gave an excited “yes!” Both Nannerl and Mozart turned to look at Salieri now with looks that said “come on now”.

Mozart took Nannerl’s hands in his.

“Nannerl I’m so happy for you and I support you and I do not want to take your moment from you but. I think I might also be non binary. A non binary guy maybe. I can do that right?”

He looked at Salieri for confirmation and Salieri nodded. A small smile played on his face.

Nannerl looked surprised but they were beaming. “Ok! Ok Wolfgang that’s wonderful!”

A natural silence fell over the three of them.

Mozart hopped up to sit on the piano and Salieri’s heart leapt. Somehow knowing he stood a chance in Mozart’s interests made everything ten times worse. He couldn’t brush off signs as easily.

“Play something else for me. I’m revelling in my newly absent gender and it needs a soundtrack.”

Nannerl laughed and nudged Salieri. Salieri started up another composition on the piano. He picked a fairly simple one and he kept spacing out looking at Mozart. Mozart had their eyes closed as they listened and the smile on their face was one of pure peace. There was nothing of the cocky charm that they usually plastered on in school or the fiery determination Salieri saw when they were cheering. This was Mozart at their default, no strings attached, and it was beautiful. Salieri didn’t stand a chance in hell.

 

Mozart let the music absorb them. It felt like for the first time, maybe ever, they had discovered peace in their body. They didn’t really care how this would go at school or in life. Right now in this moment they could sit on the piano and know that they knew who they were. They could enjoy the beauty of the music that was being played by their beautiful sibling and new friend and know that in this moment everything was right in the world. Mozart slowly opened their eyes and found Salieri’s eyes fixed on them. When Mozart smiled at him, Salieri blushed and focused on his hands.

Mozart’s stomach fluttered. Mozart wasn’t stupid. They just didn’t really know how to go about asking Salieri out in a tactful way. This wasn’t the same as the one off flings they’d had before. There was a lot more here and Mozart really didn’t want to mess it up.

Antonio Salieri deserved the best and Mozart couldn’t help but wonder if they actually fit that description.

Their gut reaction was a very solid no.

It felt selfish for them to hope Salieri never found all their flaws and it felt unrealistic that he would look past them if he did.

Mozart felt a light wave of sadness settle over their heart as these thoughts settled in their mind. Their eyes were still glued to Salieri and they found joy in the way Salieri’s loose hair strands would tickle his cheeks and he would softly blow them away. They found joy in the way his eyes would flutter shut slightly as he paused to listen to the improvisation Nannerl was playing on top of his melody. They found joy in the way he bit his lip slightly as he played.

Salieri behind a piano seemed, to Mozart, to radiate pure joy. Mozart wanted to kiss him so badly it almost hurt. It was a want that pulled so strongly on their heart they had to make a conscious effort not to give in.

Mozart was almost scared of how strong the feeling got. They counted backwards from ten in their head and pushed the feeling away into a dark corner where it wouldn’t interfere.

They slowly managed to tear their eyes from Salieri and nearly jumped when they were met dead on by Nannerl’s stare. They had one eyebrow raised and a smirk had settled across their face. Mozart’s eyes widened and they blushed. How long had they been watching? How long had Mozart been watching Salieri? Probably far longer than was reasonable.

Soon the song finished and silence fell over them again. Nannerl stood up.

“Wolfie I’m super tired from travel so I’m going to take a shower and nap.” They turned held their hand out for Salieri, who took it.

“Antonio it has been a pleasure. I hope we will see much more of each other.” They stood up and smiled sweetly at Mozart and then suddenly they were alone.

Mozart silently slid off the piano and came to sit by Salieri.

“I guess I should probably thank you for being so patient with me. I realise I could have done a better job on my side. I could have been more sensitive. I mean I could have just googled it but you were just there and it felt like an easier option. I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. Actually I’m sorry if anything about this day has made you uncomfortable so much has happened and we only actually started talking yesterday oh my god what am I doing? Do you even want to see me again?”

Mozart stared at their hands. They heard Salieri give a low chuckle.

“Of course I want to see you again. Today has been one of the most interesting and fun days I’ve had in a while. Granted I didn’t see any of it coming but I should have known you’d be unpredictable. It’s one of the things that makes you so charming. I understand the place that your questions came from and it’s fine. It’s all good.”

Mozart felt their heart flutter. “You think I’m charming?”

Salieri looked unimpressed. “Yes and it suits you much better than coy.”

There was a beat of silence before Mozart burst into giggles.

“Fair enough. And your music is much better at poetry than your words are apparently.”

Salieri playfully swatted Mozart on the shoulder. Mozart swore they could feel the heat of Salieri’s touch there long after it had gone.

“Fine. I should be heading home soon though. I am unfortunately reliant on the buses.”

Mozart forcefully bit down the urge to ask him to stay over. Too forward. Even Mozart knew that.

“Ok. I’ll walk you to the bus stop if you want.”

“I can literally see it from your front door I don’t think I’ll get lost.”

Mozart shrugged. “I want to.”

Salieri conceded.

 

Mozart was quiet for the whole minute long walk. When Salieri’s bus arrived they leaned up on their tiptoes and pressed a quick kiss to Salieri’s cheek.

“See you on Monday. Message me”

Salieri was left staring dumbstruck as Mozart walked away. The bus driver honked his horn and Salieri jumped on. His cheek felt empty without Mozart’s lips there.

Why did they do that?

What were they playing at?

Salieri tried to rationalise the situation in a million different ways but failed every time. Nothing fit. With Mozart nothing ever seemed to fit. They were the exception to every single one of Salieri’s rules and it set Salieri on edge. How could someone manage that?

  
Monday came too slowly for Salieri’s liking.

The corridor seemed busier than usual so Salieri just shoved his hands in his pockets and shoved his way through to his locker. For some reason the crowd only seemed to get denser the closer he got to his locker. He pushed to the front and his brain short circuited. Mozart was leaning nonchalantly on his locker wearing an outfit that can only be described as “hot”. He was wearing a skirt which stopped only about mid thigh and knee high socks under a loose pastel button up shirt.

Mozart spotted Salieri and their face lit up.

“Antonio! Nannerl gave me a bunch of their old stuff! Isn’t it wonderful?!”

Mozart spun round and Salieri was suddenly very aware of everyone’s eyes on him. He blushed and unlocked his locker.

“It looks wonderful.” He muttered under his breath. Salieri spotted Lorenzo Da Ponte off to the side with his arms folded. He was glaring daggers at Salieri. Salieri rolled his eyes and ignored him. The bell rang and the crowd was forced to disperse.

Mozart leaned in closer. “I appear to have created a bit of a stir.”

Salieri closed his locker and sighed. “No Shit, Wolfgang.” He looked Mozart up and down.

Mozart’s face dropped slightly and they tugged at their skirt self consciously. “Do you not like it?”

Salieri bit back a hollow laugh. “No that is definitely not what I meant. You could wear a potato sack and you’d look hot. I’m just not used to flying above the radar. I should have known that befriending you was going to change my visibility in the school hierarchy I just wasn’t prepared for the attention so soon.”

Mozart seemed to mull that over. It was with relief that Salieri noticed they had stopped tugging at their clothes and the crushed expression had gone from their face.

“I should have asked about your boundaries I’m sorry.”

Salieri smiled a little. “It’s fine, Wolfgang. You should get to class.”

Mozart smiled back. It wasn’t a cheeky smile or a sunny grin. It was soft and it sat like honey on Mozart’s lips. This smile was for Salieri and he knew it. His stomach flipped. Mozart turned to leave but they stopped and turned back to Salieri.

“You think I look hot?” There was a cocky grin back on their face but the slight blush gave away their uncertainty.

Salieri wanted to sink into the ground but he couldn’t really back out now. He let out a shaky breath.

“Yes, Wolfgang. I thought I’d made that clear.”

His confidence buckled and he practically ran away without waiting for Mozart’s response.  
He vaguely heard Mozart say “see you at lunch” but he was around the corner before he could process it.

 

Mozart slumped into his seat next to Da Ponte only 5 minutes late for class. The teacher gave them a disapproving look but didn’t comment and Mozart was grateful. He gave Da Ponte a half hearted smile.

They did not get a response.

Mozart frowned and kicked his foot slightly to get his attention.

“Are you mad at me?”

Da Ponte stared at him for 10 seconds before answering.

“You hang out with Antonio Salieri for one weekend, you stop answering my messages and the next time I see you you’ve taken up wearing a skirt. I figured I was no longer of any interest to you.”

Mozart felt it like a knife in their chest.

“I can hang out with Antonio and still be friends with you. I wasn’t ignoring you but I’ve had one hell of a weekend. I’ve done a lot of soul searching and like, identity thinking. I was with Antonio on Saturday and I spent Sunday catching up with Nannerl and deciding if I had the guts to be myself in front of my family so I’m sorry if you didn’t really factor in to my plans.”

Da Ponte rolled his eyes and Mozart felt a small knot of anger start to form in their gut.

“So were you able to do your soul searching with or without Antonio’s hand down your pants?”

Mozart whipped his head up in shock.

“How dare you?”

Da Ponte leaned back in his chair and held up his hands in fake surrender.

“All I’m saying is that Antonio tends to get what he wants and he will do whatever it takes to get it and I just want to make sure that you aren’t being forced into anything.”

“Jesus christ, Lorenzo what did he do to you? Stop being an asshole.” Mozart’s voice wavered as it threatened to rise above a whisper. The knot in their stomach was being pulled tighter with every word Da Ponte said and they were starting to feel slightly nauseous.

Da Ponte said nothing. He just huffed and sank lower in his chair. Mozart tried to focus on the class but their mind was spinning.

_You’ve taken up wearing a skirt_

Da Ponte’s words echoed around their head. They hung heavy on their heart and Mozart didn’t really feel like dissecting why right now. Unfortunately, they really sucked at maths so they didn’t understand enough of the class to stop their brain from doing just that of its own accord.

They moved their chair slightly further away from Da Ponte. This situation was spinning further out of their hands than Mozart cared to think about.

 

Mozart set their tray down in front of Salieri with a bang causing Salieri to nearly spill lettuce down his front. Salieri tried to look vaguely annoyed but when he saw Mozart’s face, concern and worry took over.

“Wolfgang, who gave you shit?”

Mozart looked vaguely startled and Salieri knew he’d guessed right.

“Lorenzo Da Ponte”

Salieri groaned. Oh, anyone but him. Why could he not just leave Salieri alone. He hung his head back and counted to ten in his head before answering

“Of course he did. I’m sorry, I know you were close. He’s a tricky piece of work. He lacks a lot of empathy I think but I-“

“What happened between you?”

Salieri was startled by the blunt question. He put down his fork.

“Lorenzo and I didn’t see eye to eye on some, ah.... issues. I misread some signals, or I guess I misread some signals. I’m honestly still unclear on the signals. He pegged me as predatory I guess. To be fair he didn’t pass that information on really he just told our friend group that I was holding them back as human beings and that they could be better without me and since then I’ve kind of just been hanging with myself.”

Mozart looked visibly upset. “That’s it? God what a jackass. I knew he was wrong but I needed to hear it from you. I’m so done with him.”

Salieri looked on slightly amused. Mozart was so quick to believe him it made his heart ache slightly. No one believed him. Why did Mozart believe him so easily? Salieri had spent so long wondering if he’d been in the wrong; if Da Ponte had really been the victim and Salieri was actually a terrible person. So many months of self doubt and Mozart just believed him. It felt like a weight off his chest.

Mozart picked at their food.

“I’m probably going to forfeit a lot of friends huh?”

Salieri’s stomach dropped. He knew what Mozart was feeling and it sucked. Salieri didn’t want to feel like a harbinger of doom but he knew that this feeling stuck like chewing gum in hair.

“I guess you find out who your real friends are, yes. I’m sorry.”

Mozart smiled softly and shook their head.

“Stop apologising for my life being a mess. You are the only thing keeping me level and happy right now. You have nothing to be sorry for.”

Salieri blushed. “That’s uh. Cool?”

Mozart said nothing but the smile on their face didn’t go away as they looked up at Salieri briefly before going back to picking at their food.

“Wolfgang, we have only actually been talking to each other for less than four days. Why do you trust me so much? What have I done to be allowed that? I’m grateful but I don’t understand.”

Salieri saw Mozart freeze.

“You fascinate me. I couldn’t help but be drawn to you yet you were always alone. I never understood why no one else could feel the same pull because it was so strong. I wish I could give you a good answer but the real answer is basically I don’t know. We may only have been talking for a couple of days but you’ve been on my radar for a while.”

Salieri frowned slightly and Mozart continued.

“Be less hard on yourself. You are pretty amazing. Actually talking to you only confirmed and exceeded my predictions. Also, in reply to this morning’s conversation, I think you’re pretty hot too.”

Salieri’s heart started beating so fast he was convinced it might fly from his chest.

“That’s. Cool.”

Mozart looked vaguely despondent before they reached over and brushed their hand over Salieri’s.

“Please come and get an ice cream with me after school. My world got flipped on it’s head today so I deserve it and there is no best first date food than ice cream.”

Salieri processed Mozart’s words slower than he would have liked.

“You want to go on a date with me? Like a date date? A romantic date?”

Mozart bit back a giggle. “I honestly cannot possibly be more blunt Antonio you have to do some of the leg work.”

Salieri honestly though he might pass out right there at the lunch table. On the other hand every synapse in his body was on fire and he had never felt more awake. It was an interesting conundrum.

“Ice cream it is then.” He slowly responded.  
Mozart broke into a radiant grin and Salieri couldn’t help but smile back. They sat in silence just grinning at each other for a moment before Salieri started to get embarrassed and broke eye contact. He was now officially going on a date with Mozart.

An actual date. Because Mozart wanted to date him.

_Mozart wanted to date him._

Beautiful glowing Mozart, even in their new found confidence and happiness, wanted to share that with Salieri.

If Mozart could see god in him it must be there. If someone as bright as Mozart wanted to spend time with him he must be somewhat good, right? Salieri was shocked but he found he might actually believe that.

Mozart suddenly jumped up. “I have practice! I will see you by your locker after school.”

They leaned across the table and pecked Salieri on the cheek quickly before disappearing again.

Salieri’s hands flew to his cheek. This kiss was different now Salieri understood what it meant. He became overtly aware that the eyes of the whole cafeteria were on him.  
He spotted Da Ponte glowering at him from three tables over. Salieri felt the overwhelming urge to bolt but then again...  
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had just kissed him on the cheek. Maybe anything was possible.

Salieri shot Da Ponte a sickly smile and blew him a sarcastic kiss.

He watched Da Ponte huff and turn back to his food and he couldn’t help but chuckle a little to himself. Salieri had missed his confidence. It had always been inside him but flying under the radar had suppressed it. That was no longer possible. Mozart was contagious and Salieri knew it. That part of Salieri was slowly coming unravelled again and Salieri was enjoying it immensely.

 

Mozart popped their head round the side of Salieri’s locker door.

“You ready?”

Mozart was practically bouncing on the spot and Salieri’s movements were all too slow. Mozart wasn’t even concentrating properly as they watched Salieri slowly tuck the loose strands of his hair behind his ears. They noticed Salieri nod slightly but before they could say anything, Salieri had wrapped his arm around their waist and planted a kiss on their cheek. Mozart was so caught off guard they gasped slightly. They turned and looked for the usual embarrassment in Salieri’s eyes but instead all they found was a spark of mischief.

Oh, Mozart was a goner. They had known that there was something locked away inside Salieri and they had been right. Salieri seemed to wear his new found confidence like a tailored suit. It everything was there before but it accentuated things in a new way and it made him look sharper and just... so much hotter.

Mozart's stomach didn't stop fluttering all the way to the diner. In their excitement they ran inside and grabbed a booth, leaving Salieri to follow them slowly before sitting down.

Mozart could feel his tension and they shifted closer to him, pressing their arms together. Salieri visibly relaxed and Mozart tried not to see that as a personal victory.

 

"It's been a day hasn't it?"

Salieri blinked at them for a second before bursting into laughter. Slowly he composed himself and agreed. Salieri's laugh sent bolts of lightning down Mozart's spine. They clasped their hand over Salieri's.

"Did you know your laugh is so beautiful? So perfect and genuine yet so rare. I hope I can make you laugh more often. I hope I can be the reason. What flavour milkshake do you want?"

Salieri spluttered a little and Mozart realised they'd done that thing again and hadn't let Salieri breathe. They did that a lot. Their brain moved faster than their people skills. Too late now.

"I-uh... chocolate?"

Salieri seemed to cringe a little at his own answer and Mozart bit back a smile. Their people skills may not be great but the fact they could make Salieri flustered was something that made their own stomach leap. Salieri was so controlled around other people and Mozart prided themselves in the fact that they'd seen nearly none of that when he was around them. Around Mozart, Salieri was loose and he smiled more. He was confident and it was beautiful. Salieri was beautiful.

Mozart grabbed the menu from Salieri's hands and jumped up.

"On a scale from 1-10 how decadent are you feeling? We can do better than chocolate."

Salieri blushed but his eyes were happy. He scrunched up his face in faux thought.

"Mmm ok probably about a seven. But that might just be your influence on me."

Mozart lightly hit Salieri's arm with the menu.

"Shut up. Ok we can do a seven. Stay here."

 

Salieri watched Mozart practically skip to the bar. He watched how Mozart talked to the waitress flinging their hands in every direction. He wondered how someone could function on that energy all the time. He worried that one day someone could dampen that energy. He knew that some people already had. He worried one day he might do that.

Before he could spiral any further into self doubt Mozart was back by his side and their head was on his shoulder and their arm had snaked around his waist.

Salieri looked down and met Mozart’s eyes with a soft smile.

"Why do you look so scared whenever I turn my back."

Salieri sighed. "Because every time I think you won't come back, honestly. This still sort of feels like a dream Wolfgang."

Mozart brought their free hand up to the side of Salieri's face and yanked on the strand of Salieri's hair that was hanging there. Salieri let out a yelp and batted Mozart's hand away.

"See? Not a dream."

Salieri looked at Mozart in bewilderment. "I can't believe you just pulled my hair."

Mozart hid their grin in Salieri's shoulder. "Hey now. Some people are very grateful when I pull their hair."

Salieri raised his eyebrows and tried to ignore the head rush that comment had caused. "Mm I'll bet."

The conversation was cut short at that point by the waitress bringing over the milkshakes. Mozart pushed Salieri’s over to him with a cheeky grin as Salieri looked at them with despair.

“Well you said seven”

Salieri shrugged and started to size up how he was going to tackle the chocolate and cream nightmare Mozart had ordered for him.

“Way to make me look bad on a first date, Wolfgang. How am I supposed to eat this without getting it all over my face?”

The comment was just met with a shrug and a smile from Mozart and Salieri rolled his eyes.

“I mean we will have many more dates that will make up for it, right?” Salieri felt Mozart’s hand on his arm. It was slightly cold and damp from holding the cold milkshake but Salieri didn’t really feel it. He was too focused on the uncertainty in Mozart’s eyes.

“Of course. What is it about any of my actions that would make you think I wasn’t into this?”

Mozart looked sheepishly at their lap. “I don’t think it’s you don’t worry. It’s definitely a problem with me. Trust issues and stuff. But that’s second date conversation! For now we have small mountains of chocolate to consume!”

“Wolfgang.” Salieri pushed Mozart’s milkshake away from them and lifted Mozart’s head so they were looking at him. “You are the best thing in my life. Don’t doubt that for a second. You- You have chocolate on your face.”

It was like the last sentence broke Mozart out of a trance and their hand shot to their cheek. Salieri shook his head. Salieri’s heart was pounding. Something had happened in Mozart’s head and their shiny happy exterior had dropped, leaving them looking lost and confused. Salieri wanted to make sure they never looked like that again.

“No no wait. I’ll get it. It’s right here.” And with that Salieri leaned in softly kissed them.

Mozart let out a small noise of surprise before sighing and kissing back. Salieri pulled back far too soon for his liking but he was aware they were in public. Mozart looked dazed but happy and Salieri considered that a success.

“Did you get it?”

Salieri pursed his lips to suppress his laughter. “Yeah I think I got it.”

Mozart pulled their milkshake back towards them.

“Antonio... I know this is a lot to ask but the game is on Saturday and I was kind of hoping maybe you’d come and watch me cheer. Nannerl will be there so you can stand with them! I don’t think my parents will come. They never do.”

Oh fuck. The game. Salieri had managed to avoid any interaction with sport for so long but he couldn’t deny he loved watching Mozart cheer.

“Wolfgang of course I will come.”

Mozart’s face lit up. They bounced slightly in their seat.

“Ok cool! Awesome! Thank you!”

Salieri frowned slightly. “Mozart you know that as your boyfriend I am happy to come and support you right? Even just as your friend I would be happy doing that. Watching you do things you love makes me happy and nothing can take that away. Not even sports.”

There was no reply for a bit.

“I mean what I do is also sports.”

“Yeah but a different kind. And even if you were somehow to join the team I would still support you. I’d question everything about you but I’d support you.”

Mozart cracked a smile at that and Salieri felt a weight lift up off his heart.

“You’re right. My sport is different. Mine’s the sexy kind.”

Salieri nearly choked on his milkshake. “You cannot say things like that.”

Mozart just finished their milkshake and got up. “Shall we go?”

Salieri grinned and got up, not caring about the tiny bit of left over milkshake in his glass. He draped his arm over Mozart’s shoulder and put his mouth right by Mozart’s ear before whispering, “How do you know all my buttons already?”

Mozart just blushed and pecked Salieri on the lips before leading him out of the diner.

 

Saturday came too quickly for Salieri’s liking. He pushed his way through the crowd of sweaty bodies to where Nannerl had saved him a place on a bench. Salieri hugged them in relief.

“Sports crowds suck what am I doing here?”

Nannerl laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “Toughen up, sweetheart we are only just starting.”

When Salieri just pulled a face they gently squeezed his hand.

“Hello Anna Maria”

Nannerl jumped at the voice behind them. They let go of his hand like it was made of fire and Salieri turned around in confusion.

When he and Mozart had spoken about his father Salieri never really knew what Mozart was feeling and through that alone Salieri had decided he hated the guy. Now, as he felt Leopold Mozart’s eyes on him he decided hate was not a strong enough word. Mozart’s parents stood behind them looking way too serious for a high school sports game and Salieri found himself wondering how these people had raised such shining, kind children. The kindest people truly are forged in fire. He noticed how Nannerl’s shoulders slumped slightly and they pulled at the hem of their waistcoat nervously and it enraged Salieri. Anyone who could dull that kind of confidence with just their presence was not someone Salieri wanted anything to do with.

That being said, Salieri could not find a single word to say to Mozart’s parents.

“So you must be Antonio.”

The disapproval was practically dripping from Leopold’s voice and Salieri had to make a conscious effort not to shiver.

“Yes I am.” Salieri swallowed the ‘sir’ that automatically came to his tongue when addressing Leopold. He had no reason at all to call him sir and he wasn’t going to.

Leopold said nothing else, he just nodded.  
Nannerl sighed before smiling and turning to face her parents. “We didn’t think you’d be able to make it.”

Leopold shrugged. “Neither did I.”

Nannerl’s hands curled into fists but they let nothing show on their face. Salieri was amazed.

“Well I’m sure Wolfgang will work all the harder knowing you’re here. I’m sure you will be proud.”

The silence that followed was deafening. Salieri shivered involuntarily and turned back to watch the field. He glanced at Nannerl but they seemed hyper focused on spotting Mozart in the crowd. Salieri spotted them instantly. Maybe it was the sun glinting off the glitter in their hair... or maybe they always sparkled like that... Salieri didn’t know. They looked completely at ease and at home amongst their team. The charm and energy was radiating through their every move. Salieri had never seen sport as at all artistic but, watching Mozart now, it was clear that he was watching an artist at work.

Mozart knew this routine. They knew every step. This wasn’t surprising to Salieri because he knew Mozart had in fact choreographed the whole thing but it was amazing how easy they made it look. They did every step perfectly whilst also winking and playing the crowd. Salieri struggled to take it all in.

Halfway through the routine Mozart seemed to finally spot Salieri and they blew him a kiss. Salieri caught it jokingly and pressed it to his heart. Mozart smiled and went to turn away when Salieri saw their eyes fell on their parents behind him. Their face fell and they stumbled slightly in the turn. Quickly they plastered a smile back on their face and they carried on the routine like nothing had happened but Salieri had seen. The brief flash of panic and fear in Mozart’s eyes had been burned into the frontal cortex of his brain and he didn’t know how to get rid of it. It infuriated him.

 

Mozart finished the routine and soaked up the applause like a sponge. They looked out into the crowd of smiling faces and they knew they’d done a good job.

Their eyes were drawn back to their father. His face was emotionless. There was nothing.

Mozart felt their heart drop into their stomach.

And there was Salieri. He was standing on his bench whooping and clapping with all his energy. When he caught Mozart’s eye he made a heart with his hands and mouthed “you’re amazing”. The fear eased slightly.

The whistle went for the beginning of the match and Mozart managed to slip away.  
Well they actually very unsubtly climbed over the barrier and flung their arms around Salieri’s neck. They could see their father over Salieri’s shoulder but they just closed their eyes. Just a little longer. They wanted to hold on to this happiness for a little longer.

They felt Nannerl tug on their shirt and they turned to hug them. Nannerl hugged them so tightly they thought they might stop breathing.

“You were amazing don’t think otherwise.”  
Mozart squeezed them once more and nodded before letting go and turning to their father.

“I didn’t think you’d make it father.”

“You stumbled Wolfgang.”

Mozart took a sharp breath in. They automatically dropped their head but Nannerl gently kicked their foot and they lifted it again.

“I was shocked to see you here. I lost my footing slightly but I picked it back up again.”  
Leopold’s face remained unchanged. “If you want to do something I expect nothing but the best. Nothing should distract you.” Leopold’s eyes drifted disapprovingly to Salieri who was busily distracting himself on his phone.

Mozart saw red. Their own self confidence issues could wait. Salieri’s could not.

“I am not distracted father. If you’d come to see me cheer at any other time you’d be able to see how far I’ve come. If you’d paid attention to me at all these last week you’d see that my ‘distractions’ as you call them have actually made me happier and better as a person. But I suppose my wellbeing as a person doesn’t really matter as long as I’m the best at cheering right? Why did you even come here?”

Again, Leopold said nothing he just turned and left. Their mother shot them a disapproving look before following.

Mozart sighed.

“I’ll probably regret that when I get home, huh?”

Nannerl shrugged. “I’ll be there too it will be ok.”

“Uh actually, I was wondering if you wanted to stay over at mine tonight, Wolfgang.”

Salieri was looking at his feet and there was a blush playing across his face.

Mozart smiled. Butterflies exploded in their stomach and they planted an excited kiss on Salieri’s cheek.

“Yes! Absolutely!”

They heard Nannerl giggle behind them and they blushed. Mozart turned to them and grabbed their hands.

“Did I tell you you look amazing yet? Because you do. And you are awesome.”

Nannerl smiled and kissed their forehead. Mozart felt all the anxiety in his chest loosen. They were surrounded by people they loved and they loved them back. Just the way they were. They didn’t have to hide or change. They can hold their head up high now and that is all that mattered right now. They turned back to the game. They wrapped their arms around Nannerl and Salieri’s waists and pulled them closer to their sides.

“You two are my favourite people in the world.”

Mozart let their laughter blend in with the sound of the crowd. They didn’t know what they looked like but they felt like they might actually be shining.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Well that was a ride.


End file.
